Pneumatic malting-drum.



N 700,842. Patnfed May 27, I902.

H. SMITH.

PNEUMATIC MALTING DRUM.

A lication filed Dec. 24, 1900. v (No Model.) 4 Sheets-S heet I,

No. 700,842. Patented May 27, I902.

' H. SMITH.

PNEUMATIUMALTING DRUM.

(Applicatiun filed Dec. 24, 1900.) (No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 2,

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Patented May 27, I902.

H. SMITH. PNEUMATIC MALTING DRUM.

(Applicatin filed Dec. 24, 1000.)

4 Sheets-Sheet 3 (N0 Model.)

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No. 700,842. Patented May 27, I902.

' H. SMITH.

PNEUMATIC MALTING DRUM.

(Application filed Dec. 24, 1900.)

(No Model.) 4 sheets-Sheet 4.

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indicated by line 4 a in UNITED STATES,

PATENT Cri ics.

HENRY SMITH, OF MILWAUKEE, IVISCONSIN.

PNEUMATIC M'ALTING-DRUM.

SPECIFICATION forming' part of Letters Patent No. 700,842, dated May 27,

Application filed December 24,1900. Serial No. 40,849. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY SMITH, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of \Visconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pneumatic Malting- Drums; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention has for its object to obtain uniform distribution of air through the material treated in rotatory pneumatic maltingdrums as well as to provide for automatic spraying of said material with water at intervals of the germinating period, said invention consisting in certain peculiarities of construc tion and combination of parts hereinafter particularly set 'forth with reference to the accompanying drawings and subsequently claimed.

Figure 1 of the drawings represents a partly transverse sectional view of a pneumatic malting-drum embodying my improvements, this view being indicated by lines 1 l in the third figure; Fig. 2, an elevation illustrating the interior of the front air-chamber of the drum, this view being on the plane indicated by line 2 2 in the said third figure; Fig. 3, a longitudinal elevation of said drum, partly broken and in section; Fig. 4, a rear elevation of the aforesaid drum,partly broken and in section, the plane of the view being the aforesaid third figure; Fig. 5, a view similar to the second figure with parts broken and in section, this view illustrating a possible variation of airflues and automatic gates for the same; Fig. 6, a detail elevation illustrating an adjustable striker; Fig. 7, a detail front elevation, partly in section, illustrating valve-control mechanism; Fig. 8, a detail sectional view illustrating valve-control mechanism in side elevation; and Fig. 9, a detail plan View illustrating the adjustable wiper, partly in horizontal section.

Referring by letter to the drawings, A indicates the main or material holding portion of a pneumatic malting-drum embodying my improvements, this drum being cradled on antifriction-disks and provided with a spurgear collar in mesh with a driving-pinion, as

is common in the art, said portion of the lindrical in drum being also provided with the usual variety of necessary openings that are normally closed; but it has not been deemed necessary to illustrate these Well-known openings and their closures.

By means of partitions B C and heads D E of the drum the latter is provided with end chambers, and connected to the partitions to register with corresponding openings therein are 'a series of perforated air-fines, all of which are preferably polygonal instead of cycross-section in order to obtain the best results with respect to agitation of the material treated in said drum.

The central exhaust-air flue F is of greater area than the outher flues G, arranged at regular intervals in a circle within the drum, said central exhaust-flue being preferably triangular in cross-section, the same as has heretofore been set forth in United States Patent No. 507,536, issued to Franklin B. Giesler October 31,1893, but closed at its front end by partition 0, its rear end being open to space within an annular nozzle H, extending from partition B through the rear head D of said drum.

An outer nozzle I, central of the front drumhead E, has an end flange that abuts a corresponding flange of an air-supply flue J, and an outer end flange of rear nozzle H abuts an opposing flange of a flue K, that is connected to a suction-fan casing or a draft-stack.

In pivotal connection with forward partition 0 are a series of counterweighted gates L for the corresponding ends of air-fines G, and plates M constitute closures for drumhead hand-holes in line with each of these flues that are arranged at intervals of a circle. In Figs. 1, 2, and 3 the flues G are shown as square in cross-section and arranged at in tervals of a circle of less diameter than the drum; but, as shown in Fig. 5, said'fiues may be triangular and formed in part by the body portion of the drum. However, in any arrangement the cross-sectional polygonal contour of the tines G may be as varied as practice may warrant.

In connection with the front head E of the drum is an annular water-reservoir N, divided byradialpartitions into aseries of com partments, each of which is provided with a plug-closed filling-aperture and valve-com trolled vent. If desirable, the vents may be made in the plugsfor the filling-apertures and each of these apertures governed bya checkvalve, an illustration of such a construction and arrangement of parts being shown in Fig. 3, wherein 5 represents a vented plug and c the check-valve adjacent thereto.

Leading from each compartment of the reservoir N is a pipe P, that extends along a corner of the preferably triangular exhaust-air flue F, each pipe being perforated at inter- 'fiuesof polygonal contour.

vals of its length within the drum and gov- .erned by a Valve, the stem d of which extends outward from the val ve-casinge in the space between nozzle I and reservoir N, the outer portion of each valve-stem being supported in abracketfifaston said nozzle. Rigid with the outer end of each valve-stem is a crank g, opposed by a stop-lug f, and, as herein shown, a conveniently-arranged spring h is employed in connection with each crank to resist swing of same in the direction necessary to open the corresponding valve, the operation being illustrated by dottedand full lines in Fig. '7. In the path of the cranks g is a wiper i in rigid connection with the stationary air-supply fine J aforesaid.

In detail, as best shown in Figs. 6, 8, and 9, the wiper 'i may be one end of a plate having its other end provided with a slot engaged by set-screw j in connection with an arm of a bracket k, that is made fast on air-flue J, said wiper being held in adjusted position by the set-screw. The rock of the valve-stems d successively against resistance of their springs his accomplished by contact of cranks g with the stationary wiper 1;, the length of time each valve will remain open depending upon the duration of contact between its spring-controlled stem-crank and said wiper, this time being variable at will when the aforesaid wiper is adjustable, as herein shown and described.

The drum being in motion, material therein is constantly shifting, and the agitation is improved by having the several perforated air- As the material in less quantity than the capacity of the drum is carried by the same it will from time to time fall of its own gravity in an oblique line transversely of said drum. As explained in the aforesaid patent, the material in its fall will sometimes be parallel to and above a face of the polygonal perforated exhaust-air flue F, and at other times corners of the flue will gradually rise above said material, and some of the latter in its fall will dam up against an elevated corner to eventually fall over the same.

The counterbalanced pivotal gates L have automatic play between stops it to open and close the air-fines G as the drum rotates, and by reference to Fig. 2 it will be seen that a major portion of these flues are always open below the mass of material in said drum, the remainder of said flues being cut 0E from the air-s11 pply. Hence it is apparent that most,

if not all, of the air will be drawn upward through the material, whereby the best results are obtained, this being an important feature of'my improvements. It is also to be observed that any air passing into the rear chamber of the drum will be drawn toward the exhaust through the flues that are for a time closed atone end.

Atany time themoisture,with the air, is not sufficient for the germinating process in the drum the wiper 2' is set in the path of the cranks g of valve-stems d, and hence at intervals in the'rotation of said drum there will be an automatic distribution of water inthe same to moisten the grain, the amount of this distribution being in proportion to the time the valve-stem cranks are successively in contact with said wiper, this being another important feature of my improvements. The position of the wiper t' is such, as shown in Fig. 4, that the water is sprayed overthe germinating grain or into the mass of same, according to the stage of growth.

By having the reservoir N on drum-head E encircling the air-supply nozzle I the radiation of warmth from the air in said nozzle and adjacent front chamber of said drum will serve to properly temper the waterin said reservoir before the same is needed to moisten germinating material in the aforesaid drum, this being stillanother important feature of my improvements.

In some instances it may be found desirable to omit the rear air-chamber of the drum, in which case the rear ends of fines G will be closed by the adjacent drum-head having the flue H central thereof.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, isv 1. Arotatorypneumatic malting-drum having a series of air-distributing flues arranged therein at intervals of a'circle, a corresponding series of independent counterbalanced gates in pivotal connection with an air-chamber wall of the drum to severally control the inlet ends of the respective flues, and stops on said partition arranged to limit automatic play of each gate.

2. A rotatorypneumatic malting-drum having a-central exhaust-air flue, a water-reservoir carried by the drum, and means for antomatic distribution of the water from the reservoir to the interior of the drum at recurrent intervals.

3. Arotatorypneumatic malting-drum,having a central exhaust-air flue, a water-reservoir carried by the drum and divided by radial partitions into compartments, a perforated pipe leading from each reservoir-compartment along said flue, valve mechanism controlling the pipes, and means whereby said mechanism is automatically actuated to open and close said pipes at recurrent intervals.

4. Arotatorypneumatic malting-drum having a central exhaust-air flue, a water-reservoir carried by the drum and divided by radial partitions into compartments, a perforated valve-controlled pipe leading from each reservoincompartment along said fine, each valve-stem being exposed and provided with a crank, a spring arranged with relation to each crank to resist swing of same in the direction necessary to unseat the corresponding valve, and a stationary wiper in the path of the valve-stem cranks to actuate the same against spring resistance.

5. Arotatory pneumatic maliing-drum having a central exhaust-air flue, a water-reservoir carried by the drum and divided by radial partitions into compartments, a perforated valve-controlled pipe leading from each reservoir-compartment along said fiue, each valve-stem being exposed and provided with a crank, a spring arranged with relation to each crank to resist swing of same in the direction necessary to unseat the corresponding valve, a stationary bracket, and a plate in adj ustable connection with the bracket to con stitute a wiper in the path of the Va ve-stem cranks.

6. Arotatorypneumaticinalting-druin,having a central exhaust-air flue, an annular water-reservoir on a drum-head surrounding the inlet air-nozzle that projects from said head, and means for automatic distribution of the water from the reservoir to the interior of the drum at recurrent intervals.

7. Arotatory pneumatic malting-drum having a forward air-chamber a central air-exhaust flue and air-distributingvflues concentric with the exhaust-flue, counterbalanced pivotal gates each arranged to control the inlet end of an air-distributing flue, a waterreservoir carried by the drum and divided by radial partitions into compartments, a perforated valve-controlled pipe leading from each drum-compartment along the air-exhaustfiue, and means for automatically opening and closing the pipe-valves.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing ,-I have hereunto set my hand, at Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of Wisconsin, inthe presence of two witnesses.

HENRY SMITH.

Vitnesses:

GREToo AHECHER, ALEX. BUCTTICT. 

